After a year of uncertainty, the New Orleans Hornets finally have an owner. Per Nola.com, New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson will become the outright owner of the Hornets, after bidding around $340 million for the franchise. The official decision should happen sometime Friday afternoon. The news should put to bed worries about the franchise’s potential relocation.

And, when one considers the success that the Saints have had under Benson, it isn’t hard to envision them transforming into a consistent threat down the road, pending Benson puts the right personnel in place. The team already boasts a shooting guard capable of scoring in bunches in Eric Gordon*, effective big men in Chris Kamen and Carl Landry, and a solid defensive wing in Trevor Ariza. The team needs a good point guard and a lot of depth, something two lottery picks in the 2012 draft should work towards. The Hornets won’t transform over night, but at least they’ve found stability.

Eric Gordon does not want to stay with the Hornets, he’s expressed interest in playing for the Pacers. Without Gordon the Hornets will have a hard time landing a significant scorer (via draft/trade/free agency). If they can get that then they should be at least a playoff team in a few years.